Dame Riovanne Duclare

Dame Riovanne "Rio" DuClare is a temple knight of the Holy See of Ishgard who struck forth on her own as a knight-errant following the Dragonsong War and the separation of church and state. As her order was reorganized during the tumultuous days of the reformation that followed, she was given two options: stay in Ishgard as a landed knight and assist in keeping order during the reconstruction, or become a wandering knight to mete out justice in the world beyond. It was a difficult choice for the beleaguered paladin, as she wanted to help ensure her people's prosperity but also recognized that plate-clad zealots with blades in their hands and Halone's name on their lips were a grim reminder of the dark days that had only recently ended. Riovanne was a warrior through and through, a sword in a sea of them, and Ishgard would need diplomats and healers more than warriors in the days to come. With a heavy heart and her Lord Commander's blessing, she set out from her homeland as a knight-errant, still beholden to the temple knights but tasked abroad of Ishgard.Since then Riovanne has traveled with a small group of companions including Szordrin Dekarios, a former temple knight and old friend of hers from the events of the Dragonsong upheaval. The two formed a close bond during the conflict, and her journey with him and their friends together is a welcome bit of home on the long and otherwise lonesome road. Their party work primarily as good-aligned mercenaries for the various city-states of Eorzea and beyond through lawful letters of marque to protect the populace, patrol the wilds, and hunt down monsters and criminals. Between these missions, Riovanne spends time at Mocha & Mug, her favorite coffee shop, drinking what the staff refer to as "coffee for daredevils" and occasionally throwing on an apron herself to help. She loves the simple pleasures in life: a strong cup of coffee, a warm hearth, and the company of her boon friends.Oath InformationRiovanne's specific Oath of the Crown is sworn to Halone the Fury herself. To this end, the oath's tenets are thus:Law: Halone's tenets of valor, candor, and conviction are the rules by which Riovanne lives her life, and she will never compromise them. They are the law to her, on a very deep and personal level. Ishgard's laws of the land also serve as a moral code for her, as well as her responsibility to enforce when within Coerthan lands.Loyalty: Riovanne's word is her bond. Her promises mean everything to her, so she doesn't make them lightly. When she holds her rosary to her heart and speaks her vow aloud, she makes a divine pact between herself, Halone, and whoever the third party is that's receiving the vow. Breaking any part of it would be betraying her goddess.Courage: As courage is a cardinal virtue of Halone, Riovanne is quick to place herself in harm's way to protect the innocent. Courage (even to the point of recklessness) comes as naturally to her as breathing, and when she demonstrates it against overwhelming odds, she feels closer to her goddess.Responsibility: Actions have consequences, and any attempt to evade them (dereliction of duty, passing the buck) is a grave moral failing as far as Riovanne is concerned, something to be dealt with head-on and corrected whether it be herself or others.

Regardless of outfit or situation, Rio wears a Halonic rosary on her sword arm (right wrist). This rosary contains numerous prayer beads and several small charms that seem to have meaning to her:
- A solid golden emblem of a spear across a shield, a common symbol of the warrior goddess' faith
- A simpler shield and spear emblem, detailed with ice blue enamel
- A silver coffee mug, its handle used as a fastener to the rosary, with brown enamel detail to look like the mug is fullPerceptive Ishgardians might recognize and pick out a certain coarseness to her speech that would mark her as being from the Brume, either to highborn nobles or to her fellow lowborn.Active or former temple knights might have served with her and recognize her, albeit a few years older and with some additional scars from the road.Clergy of Halone who spend their time in the Holy See might have seen Rio during one of her routine visits to pray to the Fury and offer tithes.

- WU/T Friendly!- Fairly new to RP in FFXIV, but not to RP in general (D&D, other online games like WoW, ESO, even City of Heroes and Neverwinter Nights for my fellow olds).- Mature themes accepted, but not explicit Dark themes (particularly involving any form of SA).- More than happy to join pop-up RP and world RP!- I'm still learning a lot of lore, so if something doesn't make sense in her backstory please let me know.- Not looking for a partner; married IRL and Rio's standards are comically lofty.